1 year (2016). Signed by San Francisco as a free agent 11/17/15 (minor-league contract).

1 year (2015). Signed by Texas as a free agent 12/14 (minor-league contract with salary of $1M in majors). May earn additional $0.6M in performance bonuses. Contract selected by Texas 4/29/15. Sent outright to Triple-A by Texas 10/21/15.

What do you think of Kyle Blanks? Would you like him to get everyday at-bats?(nubber from tx)

Hey nubber, thanks for the question. I've been a big Blanks fan since he played at Lake Elsinore. I still think he can play every day, at least in terms of production, but health has kept that from happening and I'm beginning to wonder whether he'll ever reach his potential. I hope Blanks gets a shot and makes it happen, because he's fun to watch when he's on his game. (Geoff Young)

Who are a few of your favorite players this season? (MLB or minor)(Batpoet from San Diego)

Hi Batpoet, always good to see my Twitter friends here; glad you could join us! At the big-league level, I have a fondness for guys who attended my alma mater or who I saw play a lot in the minors. That would include A.J. Griffin, Oliver Perez, Kyle Blanks, Headley. Current minor leaguers? Austin Hedges, who I look forward to watching at Lake Elsinore. And of course, Billy Hamilton, who is just so disruptive. I doubt I'll ever get tired of watching him play. (Geoff Young)

I know Spring Training stats and performance are useless and junk, but I must say I am encouraged by Kyle Blanks so far.
The problem is there's no room for him on the Padres roster, unless Quentin or Alonso go down. What say you?(matthewverygood from Los Angeles)

Hey Matt, as I mentioned earlier, I'm a big Blanks fan. I would love to see him succeed, but as you note, the situation is crowded. Quentin's track record suggests that he'll go down at some point. Unfortunately, Blanks' track record suggests the same. (Geoff Young)

What is your take on Kyle Blanks and do you agree with the Padres acquiring Quentin to push Blanks out of the starting lineup?(El Hombre from Anaheim)

When Kyle Blanks came up at the end of 2009 and went nuts, a lot of us had high hopes for him. Since then, he's battled injuries, an inability to make consistent contact, and the lack of a true defensive home. Blanks is 25 years old now and hasn't progressed one bit in three years. He isn't necessarily to blame for this, but right now he's looking more like a spare part than a regular. And I'm not sure he has a future in the Padres organization, although that probably was true with or without Carlos Quentin. (Geoff Young)

What's your take on year 2 of the Jed Hoyer era in San Diego?(Arby's from Good mood food)

Why wasn't Heath Bell traded? ...I have to admit I haven't seen too many Friars games this year, being generally more focused on the AL East, but it's really hard for me to come to a judgment in that other than Chase Headley, Cameron Maybin, Kyle Blanks, Corey Luebke, and Mat Latos, and (likely) Anthony Rizzo, I see a lot of guys who are basically just interim types. I wish they had gotten more playing time for James Darnell. (Steven Goldman)

Can Kyle Blanks be a major league LF for long? He's getting OK reports, but he is just so BIG....and he's supposed to be a very good defensive 1B. Should the Padres just trade him to a team that's going to need a 1B and get it over with? Do you think they might?(Lloyd from Evanston)

He's in good shape for him (250-260 or so), and he's always been nimble for his size. I think he can become an adequate left fielder. (Kevin Goldstein)

As great as Adrian Gonzalez is--and he's one of the top players in the game--he is one guy. The Padres had reason to believe the 2011 team could be a bit better, with an improved rotation, a full season of (healthy) Ryan Ludwick, Cameron Maybin possibly blossoming in center with another year in the majors, Kyle Blanks coming back from his TJ surgery, etc. If they acquire Brendan Ryan in a trade to man shortstop as is expected, and then sign someone like Derrek Lee to play first base, then you're talking about a team that could still win something like 82-85 games. Then, in 2012, you have Casey Kelly, Anthony Rizzo, Simon Castro and maybe Drew Cumberland coming up if he continues to tear up the minors. That is an exciting roster all of a sudden, and it was brought about without fielding a terrible team.

The Padres can trade Bell and Ludwick in July and still have a decent team, assuming Aaron Cunningham or Kyle Blanks can slot into Ludwick's place and they bump Mike Adams up to the role of closer. The gloom and doom mentality coming out of San Diego after the trade of Adrian Gonzalez is almost enough to make me start a Padres' blog in response. (Marc Normandin)

Woah. I realize that Adrian is "only" a 5-6 win player, which subtracted from last year's team puts the Padres in the 82-85 range. But they've lost more than him. They got surprising amounts of help from Torreabla, Eckstein, Garland, Jerry Hairston, Tejada, even Gwynn's glove. Their pitchers were very healthy. If they hadn't torn up the Giants, the race would have been over a week earlier. Not to diminish their accomplishments, but a lot went right for them in 2010 beyond the talent of their players.
You'd be at home in SD, there are plenty of fans who project that most of the current farm system will be at least major league average if not stars. Let me know the next time that occurs in reality. (Geoff Young Fan from San Diego)

Eckstein wasn't that good in 2010 except for very early on. Garland/Correia/LeBlanc is not as good as Harang/Stauffer/Luebke, especially the 2010 version's of Correia/LeBlanc. Gwynn's glove will be offset by Maybin's glove, and Maybin has a chance of hitting better than that even if he doesn't develop any further. A full season of Ludwick not dealing with his calf injury will be big for the lineup. Kyle Blanks coming back with a working elbow halfway through the season has the potential to be big for the lineup, since it won't be screwing with his swing like it did in the beginning of 2010.

I don't think most of the current farm system of the Padres is any good at all. But Castro is a future #2 starter, Kelly could turn into that or an ace, Rizzo is young and very talented with a lot of potential as a well-rounded hitter, and Cumberland will be fine as long as he doesn't slam his knee into a wall again. (Marc Normandin)

Colin hoping for a little round of injury update. Whats the latest on Kyle Blanks & Nick Johnson? I keep hearing elbow stiffness for Blanks but for it to be going on this long it sounds like there's more to it than that.(Jquinton82 from NY)

Honestly? I don't know. And I'm afraid that if I were to try and answer this question I'd do more harm than good. I mean, I know where the elbow IS, but that's about the extent of my medical expertise. (Colin Wyers)

How are the Padres winning with a AAA outfield?(Steve from Stiltsville)

Pitching, pitching, pitching; even away from Petco they've been pretty good. Bud Black has done a particularly good job with the bullpen, which leads baseball in WXRL by a country mile, 8.85 vs. 5.50 for the next-best club. That said, I doubt they can keep it up given just how poor the offense has been, and something like a big comeback from Kyle Blanks could be decisive. Not holding my breath somehow. (Steven Goldman)

So you like Davis over Matusz? Interesting. How 'bout in the NL? And I know he's no longer ROY elibible, but what do you think of Kyle Blanks? (Stu from NJ)

It's a tough year to be a rookie in the NL, with Heyward and Strasburg as your competition. Blanks can obviously hit, but that stadium will cut into his counting numbers a bit. Watching him play the outfield should be fascinating. (Shawn Hoffman)

Watching Kyle Blanks play the outfield will be "fascinating"? As in, so bad it's good? I guess I don't see the wide range of potential outcomes that would inspire fascination. I'm anticipating predictably bad OF defense.(Word Patrol from Word Town)

Did you see his inside the park home run last year? I honestly can't think of another word to describe it. (Shawn Hoffman)

Hopefully you have the Garry Templeton jersey to match! Follow-up on cabrera is .285avg. 50+ steals realistic?(Marco from San Diego)

Kyle Blanks! I should pick a young pitcher next, but I feel like I can't make that decision until Poreda shows what he's got in the majors. Snagging a Latos one sure is tempting though...

Anyways, that average seems high to me still. Petco is a cruel mistress. I would lean more towards 40 steals this year, maybe 45. Let's see how well he does now that everyone knows he's going. (Marc Normandin)

What's the latest on EASports release of Grand Slam Tennis for Xbox? Have they adapted the motion control, or will it be using the straight controls. And, more importantly, did you decide on the McCutcheon shirt? Thanks.(strupp from madison)

I didn't get a McCutchen shirt yet, but I'm still considering it. I picked up a Kyle Blanks shirt first, and there's a 1984 Padres hat with my name on it once it's in stock in my size. The McCutch (The Cutch? Which one of these works better, hmm) will be next in line though.

I haven't heard much about it yet, but the delay they gave the game makes me think they want to implement Natal technology in it. I would have to double check release dates for both the game and the Natal tech to confirm that though. (Marc Normandin)

Clearly, you replace the Brian Giles t-shirt with a Kyle Blanks jersey, which doubles as an emergency shelter for you and 3 friends.
Are you labeling Kouz as a pretty good glove based on 2009? Not just a fluke?(Tom Waits from San Diego)

He's been average or above each year of his career according to both UZR and FRAA, so I'm basing that on more than just 2009.

The problem is that MLB.com just offers those lame custom name jerseys, so I can't get a Blanks or Venable one without it being something that will fall apart in two months. I need to get someone in San Diego to buy me one at the ballpark and ship it to me. Or call MLB.com since I can't find what I want on the website.

In related news, I bought a new Red Sox hat (Cooperstown '75 franchise cap!) in spring of 2004 and another new one in spring of 2007. I think I'll be picking up a Padres hat ('69 franchise cap) as a replacement for that one, so hopefully that means the Padres will be competitive again. Who says stat analysts can't be superstitious (Marc Normandin)

I'm loving watching what Kyle Blanks is doing in MLB, but it's a bit peculiar since he's showing more power and a worse batting eye than he has recently in the minors. Thoughts?(Mario66 from Toronto)

"Worse batting eye" is a misnomer. I'm sure his batting eye is the same, it's just big league pitching is so good. Guys always walk less when they come up. As for the power, to early to say, but yes, he sure is fun. (Kevin Goldstein)

Have you seen enough of Kyle Blanks to form a strong opinion?(gerrybraun from san diego)

I don't think he can play left field except maybe in some crazy small ballpark like Houston or Philly. He absolutely can't play in a park that's 404 to the gap. The Padres should trade Gonzalez as he's peaking with that ridiculous contract, make a Teixeira deal and move on with Blanks at first base. He won't have much trade value. (Joe Sheehan)

Should the Padres sell high on A. Gonzalez and Heath Bell right now? Those guys aren't going to be around by the time the Padres are good again, right? (Jeff from Minnesota)

Gonzalez's under-market contract runs through 2011, which would make him an excellent addition for somebody looking for a multi-year fix at the position; he'd yield worthwhile value at the deadline, certainly. Bell might or might not, but as a guy two years from free agency (after this season) and due for arbitration-inspired pay hikes, some teams might prefer to be a bit more niggardly in the haggle for him. But the question of whether the Pads should seems to me to be answered, "absolutely," because they need to add talent (no matter who is in charge), and if they're dead anyways, at least they have Kyle Blanks to bring up in A-Gonz's place. (Christina Kahrl)

Scouts (and your rankings)seem to less positive on Kyle Blanks than just a cursory examination of his numbers would suggest. What is it about him that downgrades him a bit -- simply his size/position or is there something in his swing that makes folks less high on him?(Calvin Pickering from (Who knows?))

There are a lot of weird things about him. You certainly have the size thing, but he also is really quick to the ball without much of a load or leg kick or anything. He's kind of like a 285 pound contact hitter who smacks 20 out because he's some damn huge. He's a weird prospect. (Kevin Goldstein)

KG, with the whole Padres divorce situation forcing that team to deal Peavy and forgo Trevor Hoffman (the latter not a big deal IMHO), is their farm system ready to pick up the slack? Seems to me that there's some interesting pitching there, but not much in the way of exciting position guys past Kyle Blanks. (Steven Goldman from Fortress of Steveitude)

Shouldn't you be asking me about some 1920s Senators infielder who had a hit song so you can get prospect questions later? It's not a good system, and yes, especially weak on hitters. (Kevin Goldstein)

If the Padres trade Peavy wouldn't it make sense to trade Adrian Gonzalez as well? What do you think they're likely to get for either or both of them?(Steve from McQueens)

Yes, especially since Kyle Blanks is coming up hard on Gonzalez's flank. He's not quite as good as Gonzalez, but the raw power will play, even in that park. You have to trade Peavy first; once you do that, then it's clearly a rebuild.

For Peavy, I've said three guys: one top 25, one top 50, one top 100, at least two of whom can be on the field in August. For Gonzalez, less than that; the Padres could deal him and focus on some low-minors up-the-middle guys, as they've struggled mightily to fill those spots. (Joe Sheehan)

Great piece on the final game.
Is there any kind of realistic hope for the Padres or should they explore the market for Agon and Peavy? Wouldn't the Yanks be players for both? (dcoonce from Bloomington Indiana)

Because of Kyle Blanks, I think you can look into trading Gonzalez, who should bring back a fair amount in a deal. Peavy is basically untouchable.

KG, you said earlier that there's not enough info on minor league spring training to do a Monday morning 10-pack. Hey, I sent you a picture of Kyle Blanks with his new '70s-era afro. What more do you need for a column???(Bill from Tempe, AZ)

This is Bill Mitchell folks. One of our photographers. If you ever see a great photo from a team that has camp in Arizona -- Bill took it.

He also has a great sense for the fun in the game. The Daric Barton mohawk pic, the one with Carlos Zambrano on a bike. We love Bill.

I'm rooting for Kyle Blanks, if only to use that photo for a 10 pack. (Kevin Goldstein)

Well, I think it's a bit premature to slot him into any of those roles at the moment. I think he's probably most likely to be a middle-of-the-road first basemen, but he's got All-Star potential and he's not the safest bet, either. Him in a more difficult environment is one of many subplots I'm looking forward to in this minor league season. (Bryan Smith)